Hand raising orphan mice

Question
QUESTION: Hi,

I have just found two orphaned mice in my house. I think I may have released their mum about 3 days ago. I am not sure when they last ate but I am trying to feed them some kitten formula with a syringe. Is this OK? One of them has one eye open but the other is still closed and the other has both eyes closed. They both have fur and are quite jumpy. How old do you think they are? What do I need to do to keep them alive? I am very worried about the little babies. They are so TINY!

ANSWER: Dear Arly,

The kitten milk is perfect. Keep them warm. They need to be fed every two hours for another week, then every four until they refuse it or their eyes have been opened for two weeks. That will mean they are 4 weeks old. They are going to get very jumpy soon, so keep them in a container with a lid.

It's really important to rub their tummies and genitals with a Q tip after they eat. Their mom does that to make them eliminate, and if they don't eliminate they will become poisoned and die. As soon as you see them do it on their own, you can stop.

In a week, start to give them cracker crumbs, mild cheese, and bits of raw vegetable. Once they start eating that, they should refuse the milk; and you can give them a commercial mouse and rat mix.

Because they are already two weeks old, they have a very good chance of survival, but it isn't guaranteed. If they don't survive it isn't your fault; it's hard to stand in for a mouse mommy.

If they are still jumpy and hard to handle, and keep trying to escape, it will be time to let them go in about 4-6 weeks. If they become tame and seem happy, you have yourself a sweet pet. Wild mice live in captivity longer than tame mice, and they can be very sweet.

If you let them go, take them to a wooded area or meadow and leave them in a little cardboard box with a doorway, and plenty of food. In a week you can go back and take the box. They should have found homes by then. Of course if they are still in it, leave it longer.

Have fun with the little fellows and thank you for saving them!

squeaks n giggles,

Natasha
<:3  )--~

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------


mice   QUESTION: Thank you so much for your quick response. When I went to give them their next feed after I messaged you they wouldn't accept it and one of them bit me. I figured this was a good thing so I put some bread soaked in the kitten formula in there and checked back in an hour and they had eaten heaps of it and pooped lots. I am so happy! One of the, the slightly larger one, has opened its eyes completely but the smaller, more jumpy, one is still closed. I checked on them through the night and the bread continued to get smaller and they still wouldn't take any of the milk from me so I just made the bread wetter in the hopes that they will get some hydration from that. I have put some guinea pig feed in with them as I had that at home but they don't seem interested so I will try them on some softened sweet potato this afternoon (it used to be my pet mouse favorite). Could you give me any advice on technique with syringe feeding them? I have attached a photo, maybe you can tell me what age/stage you think they are at? They are confusing because they are eating and pooping on their own but they still have closed eyes and flush ears...

Thank you again!

Answer
Dear Arly,

I'm glad they are doing so well. You don't have to nurse them with the syringe if they can eat the formula off of the bread. Here's an idea to get them to drink water. While giving them various foods, put the bread with formula in a tiny bowl or bottle cap that they can't drown in. Put less and less bread in (with the same amount of formula) every day. Then in a week or so, when you are sure they are eating solid food, put a solution of less and less formula in water, ending with just water after a week.

Wild house mice; and pet mice, who descended from wild house mice; as well as hybrids; open their eyes on about age 14. I believe your mice are wild house mice. Field mice may have a different schedule and open them earlier, which would be useful to be able to escape from predators. I think your guys are 14 days old.

Sounds like they are pretty wild and you will eventually release them. If you plan on this, handle them as little as possible.

squeaks n giggles,

Natasha
<:3  )--~